This past weekend at Fantasia Film Festival in Montreal, we had the honor of seeing Yoshihiro Nishimura’s newest film and the latest inclusion in the MEATBALL MACHINE series, MEATBALL MACHINE KODUKA. Nishimura has become famous worldwide not only for his amazing special effect work but also for his self-styled fast-moving gonzo films, all of which […]

David Lynch is a perpetual inspiration. I’m watching INLAND EMPIRE as I write this brief introduction, a surreal horror film I can return to countless times, year after year, and never tire of exploring, of being frightened and intrigued by its nightmarish profundity and creative power. His film TWIN PEAKS: FIRE WALK WITH ME clawed into my subconscious at crucial time in my young life. I had a small wood-paneled television in my bedroom as a teenager, a VCR below, and curtains to shut out the dark. But Lynch invited me into that darker chamber of Douglas Firs, a darkness that light and time and fear crawl out from and flourish behind dressers.

What follows is a collection of links to the best David Lynch “creativity” and/or “creative process” interviews I could find on this rainy morning. If you find others that you have prospered from, please post them as a comment. I would like to grow this list to act as a resource for those who might be flirting with the idea of further understanding Lynch’s work, or for those among us who wish to review his words and the depths of his creative spirit.

So, read on and dig in. May these links, these videos, and the audio interviews serve you well.

NOTE: If you haven’t yet seen DARLING, you might want to check back here AFTER you’ve experienced it, for SPOILERS abound. I’ve outlined the entire film, albeit in my own scrawl. If you have watched the film, may this serve you well.

DARLING (Official Trailer) (dir. Mickey Keating)

Though I tend to sketch out the flow of certain films I watch to study story beats, character decisions, narrative arcs, act breaks, thematic elements and visual or expository motifs, all with the intent of becoming a better writer, rarely do I do so with as much concentration and verve as I did with Mickey Keating’s masterful DARLING. Perhaps, it’s the film’s attention to the disintegration of a self captured so intricately by Keating’s visual poetry. Perhaps, it’s because the film’s horror still lingers under the weight of my weary eyeballs, in the mirrors of my home, or in the ticking of a clock that resounds like bones clacking gently, calling, murmuring me into another hallucinatory state. Whatever it is, this is the kind of film I want to approach with care. It deserves it.

This map, or sketch, was done on the film’s second viewing, so I know there’s a lot that has been left out. More always comes to light under further viewings and as thought and time work together. I also understand this sketch might not be helpful to anyone except me. That said, it most certainly could be helpful in terms of understanding how a movie becomes effective to a particular viewer, the beats and repetitions, the structure that makes it tick when graphed in real-time. In many ways, it’s a simple diagram of the story structure, but certain elements (doors, mirrors, phones) did start to stick out more for me. Seeing it in this way also shows me how skillfully Keating navigates a tense story with such little exposition or backstory.

I would love to see hows others mapped the film, too. So, consider this rough, but hopefully useful in some capacity. And, of course, if it stirs you to experience DARLING, all the better. It’s a fantastic piece of work, mesmerizing, really.

A ROUGH SKETCH:

Thank you for your attention. If you have any tips on how you “map” films, please do let me know. For those interested, here’s an article in which Keating shares his inspirations for DARLING.

The premonition begins. The anticipation of release. And I can’t think of anything else I’d rather be watching than PFFR‘s latest Adult Swim mini-series masterpiece of comedic intensity NEON JOE, WEREWOLF HUNTER. This is precisely what our festering planet needs. For safety. Consider it a balm, a salve for these tortured howls, a strategy, a tale written on the dead hearts of so many snarling backwoods beasts who bleat their death-cries under the malefic moon of your worst night terror. Yes, dear reader, the time is near. Tonight, the moon shall be soaked in neon streaks of werewolf hunting glory. Midnight. May we all be so fortunate to witness his coming, the coming of Neon Joe.

Big congratulations to legendary actor Joe Estevez for taking home a Lifetime Achievement Award presented to him during the 3rd Annual On Cinema Oscar Special. Joe’s work is truly admirable and his artistic output, tremendous. You deserve it, Joe.

On a related note, it was a real honor to attempt to capture Joe’s on-camera energy in his portrayal of President Davidson in Tim Heidecker’s web series, DECKER, as novelized in DECKER: CLASSIFIED.

The written version of Joe’s character demanded a heightened attention to facial detail, unique intonations only Joe could have pulled off, and perfect verbal pauses rammed full of meaning that pushed his character to the heights of cinematic grandeur. Thank you, Joe, for the experience.